Through the years we have had the opportunity to talk to and work with many studio owners from all over the world. One of the biggest issues is time management. We have found that having a daily plan and following it religiously will help make your life easier. We have written several articles on time management, but it is so vital to the mental health of the studio owner that we will continue to help you by sharing techniques that have been instrumental to our success.
1. Buy a week-at-a-glance appointment book and use it faithfully. Write everything that you need to accomplish in this book. This is the most important thing you can do. Put everything in there from personal to business! If you’re involved in something, it goes into the planner.
2. Differentiate between the urgent and the vital. The urgent may be making a lot of noise to get your attention, but it is rarely vital that it be done right now or at all. This includes parent and teacher issues.
'The vital task rarely needs to be done today. The urgent task calls for instant action. The momentary appeal of these tasks seems irresistible, and they devour our energy. With a sense of loss we recall the vital tasks we pushed aside. We realize that we have become slaves to the tyranny of the urgent.' –Charles Hummel
3. The key is not to prioritize what is on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities. Make a list and follow it from a to z.
4. ,Keep track of your time by 15 minute increments for 2 weeks to see how you actually spend your time. Compare this to what you should be or want to be spending your time on. It will give you the motivation to make needed changes.
5. Say 'no' to the project, not the person. You cannot do everything everyone asks you to do. Repeat this until you get it!
6. Learn how to effectively delegate. This means picking the right person, giving clear directions, setting benchmark and due dates, and then letting them do it. That last part will be the hardest thing to do. But if you stay out of the way things, will get done without you. Business owners are among the worst at being able to sit back and let others do their job.
7. Procrastination has a lot of different causes: fear, boredom, perfectionism, an overwhelming task and unclear goals. Identify the reason behind procrastination, so that you are solving the right problem when dealing with it.
8. If you earn $30,000 a year, each minute is worth $0.26. If you earn $100,000 a year, each minute is worth $0.90. Use these thoughts to help you prioritize your activities and determine to whom you should be delegating. Any time you are doing work that someone at a lower wage could be doing, you are losing money.
9. Set goals. They help you to prioritize your activities and let you know that you have succeeded. Celebrate when you do succeed. Don’t get so bogged down that you forget to enjoy the journey.
10. There are 1,440 minutes in a day and 29,020 days in an 80-year lifetime. Take control of your time and make this year the year you do what you want.
Bonus Tip!
Some days you just need a time-out! If you need to take a step back and relax during your busy day, just do it! If you are feeling overwhelmed, you will not be as productive. Get up, go outside and soak up some sunshine, breath, tense up your body and then totally relax. A short 10-minute walk is a wonderful way to get your mind refreshed and recharged. This is a great way to release tension and increase your positive energy flow.
